Splatoons: A Fresh Start (EXCERPT)
by Alex Vjuz
Summary: Inkopolis is a thriving city, consisting of many inhabitants. It is a happy world, and no other Inkling would want to replace it; but when the Great Zapfish is stolen, it is hard to believe there would be no power. Revolving around the character Swish Jackson. Swish is a normal inkling (More or less so), he has the same goal to become the "freshest" (EXCERPT, NOT FULL STORY).


NINTENDO ©

Splatoons

A Fresh Start

 **Alex Vjuz**

Fan fiction inspired by the Nintendo phenomenon "Splatoon."

Excerpt

Turfin' it up!

Section 1:

"Swishy, you better get up! You're gonna' be late for your test!"

A tired inkling replied, "I know mom, just please wait, five more minutes!"

Swish Jackson or "Swishy" as his mother would like to address him; Swish was a simple inkling, and he had the same goal as everyone else. He wanted to become the "freshest" Inkling in Inkopolis; although, he had never participated in an actual Turf War match, but there was something special about today. Today was the day Swish would take the test. This was the test that can certify an inkling to partake in Turf War battles.

Swish laid in bed for about five minutes, until he looked at his clock and shouted out, "Shoot! It's eight o' clock, I gotta' get ready!"

Swish finally realizes that he has an important test today, although he hasn't even brushed his pointy teeth.

Swish immediately ran to the restroom, took a quick ink shower, and darted towards the door. "Okay mom, I gotta' go, gonna' be late for the test!" Swish hears a reply from his mother, but can't exactly interpret it. "Hey mom, did you say anything?"

His mother replies sarcastically, "Nothing honey, just be careful, and make sure that you do great on the test!"

Swish replies, "Okay mom, see ya' later!" Swish dashes out of his apartment and mumbles to himself cheerfully, "'Cause I'm gonna' be the freshest like no one ever was!"

Section 2:

About ten minutes later, Swish had successfully made it to his college; Splatterton University.

"Oh man, I feel like I just ran one hundred miles!" said Swish, who was extremely exasperated after the long run.

Swish looked up and in the corner of his eye he could see someone waving at him. "Hey Swish Cheese! You better get your butt movin', Mr. Azner isn't going to be happy when he doesn't see you in line!"

Swish knew who it was; he was one of Swish's great friends, Samuel Cutters. "Sam, ya' scared me, I thought you were Ramos."

Samuel replied, "Ramos? You're crazy; he hasn't been here in months."

Swish said, after recovering from his cough session, "Yeah I know, where's Kortessa?"

"KC is already in line waiting for you and me," said Samuel, who straightened a little after her name being mentioned.

Swish and Samuel were best friends to the very end. The two were always called out on, for Samuel had a muscular form, while Swish was the same height but not very strong. Samuel had stuck up for Swish, sometimes starting a fight, just to save Swish's skin. Samuel was slightly strange; at least according to Swish, for he would sometimes use words from a different language in his sentences. Swish thought that is probably why Samuel had a light brown skin tone; who had matching orange eyes. After Swish glimpsed a little bit of his past, he said, "Nice, I guess we should head over there too... to ya' know, play some Turf War!" said Swish enthusiastically.

Samuel grinned and said, "Yeah man, who knows what could happen, maybe we could meet Callie and Marie personally."

Swish raised an eyebrow and replied, "Dude, you wish, inklings like us live on the bottom, if you want to hang out with a celebrity you gotta' be a celebrity."

Samuel rolled his eyes and said, "Sure, sure, whatever you say Swishy… uh', what about The Legend Twenty-Seven?"

Swish replies inquisitively, "Maybe, but do you even think that's his real name?"

"Probably not, but I'm pretty sure no one knows his name," said Samuel in a quiet tone.

There was a pause between the two, but Swish realizes that there are other matters at hand. "Oh man, we better get in line, I'm sure all the other inklings are done with their test."

Samuel replies happily, "Let's go get 'er done!

Section: 3

"Mr. Jackson! Please report to the Trainee Station!"

Swish knew exactly who it was; Mr. Azner. Mr. Azner is one of Splatterton's best Turf War instructors. Swish was bubbling with excitement, because he was going to see if he could get certified for Turf War. Swish walked up the line to Mr. Azner, and was immediately given instructions.

"Mr. Jackson glad you could join us! Please put this basic apparel on," said Mr. Azner, who then pointed to one of the changing grids.

Swish took the clothing and walked towards a changing grid. He was quite shocked; the clothing consisted of a headband, yellow tee shirt, striped shorts, and cream colored shoes. It was something different from the school's uniform, for he was wearing an inkling clip, suit, and polished shoes. Swish kind of liked the change though; he didn't exactly like the formal look.

Mr. Azner walked toward Swish and handed some sort of trinket to him, "This will become very handy Mr. Jackson; it is what all newbies attain prior to passing the test and being able to make some money up in Turf War!"

Swish was immediately surprised, he studied a lot, and he knew far too well what Mr. Azner had just handed over. Swish replied in a shocked tone, "The Custom Splattershot Jr.! I can't believe this, are you sure I can keep it?"

Mr. Azner swiveled around; he paused and replied, "Indeed Mr. Jackson, the school's funds pay for everyone's starters. Even the apparel you wear now is yours."

In Swish's mind, he was bursting with excitement, in fact so much excitement he softly mumbled, "Awesome."

"Mr Jackson please step through this door, I will give you further instructions through the intercom, got it?" said Mr. Azner.

Swish stood a little taller. "Yes sir!"

Swish knew where he was; the training course for all the newbies. He was in awe, as he could see the amount of work put into building a training field. Swish slung his ink pack over his shoulder, he then heard a beep coming from his weapon. Swish used his robotic voice and said, "Weapon activated." Swish had a tingling feeling inside. This feeling was excitement. "Time to splat it up!"

Mr. Azner spoke into the testing intercom, " Testing, testing, one, two, three! Alright, Mr. Jackson, your goal is to do everything as I say, you got that?"

An excited Swish replied, "Yes sir!"

Mr. Azner reported his first order, "Good, good… now first, pop those balloons!"

Swish unquestioningly aimed his cross reticle, pulled the trigger, and he could see the blue slush ink disperse from the weapon. The balloon had immediately exploded in Swish's blue color. He thought it was kind of strange a balloon would even react to ink, but he never thought much of it anyway.

Mr. Azner spoke in a straight tone, "Nice Jacky me boy, now proceed forward, and pop any other balloons you see on the way!"

Swish was moving really fast on foot, but he then came to a stop. There was a high ledge, which undoubtedly he knew he couldn't jump across it.

Mr Azner said with the intercom slightly muffling his voice, "Ha! Mr. Jackson, you're gonna' learn a few new things here and there, but first shoot the floor!"

At first Swish was puzzled, but he knew that he was going to learn something, so he basically shot the floor. The blue ink plastered the cement and shimmered in the sunlight.

Mr Azner leaned forward in his chair, and spoke deeper into the microphone, "Nice, now Mr. Jackson, this is going to be weird, but I need you to think about your ancestors. Feel the squid, be the squid!"

Swish thought about for a while, and then all of a sudden, he realized he had shrunk in size.

Mr. Azner had proud fully commented, "Good job Mr. Jackson! You have successfully turned from kid to squid! Now in squid form you are unseen by enemies, you move faster, your jumps are higher, and you can even climb walls!"

All Swish could say was just, "Cool." By then he knew what his task was, he got back a bit, and then raced toward the ledge. He jumped off and could feel the air around him. As Swish opened his eyes, he could see he was on the other side.

Mr. Azner clapped his hands. "Great, now you may proceed Mr. Jackson!"

Swish popped more balloons along the path, but he was then met by a fence. He had no idea how to pass this obstacle.

"Alright Mr. Jackson, if you remember your courses, squids are very flexible. You should try it; you'll find yourself going right through the grating," said Mr. Azner.

Swish transformed back into squid form. He didn't know whether to trust Mr. Azner or not, but in the end he approached the fencing, and simply slid right through it. Again, he mumbled another, "Cool."

Mr. Azner excitedly announced, "Now Mr. Jackson, remember what I told you about climbing walls? Go ahead and give it a whirl!"

Swish painted the wall, to which he swam up in a fluid motion. In his mind he kept on thinking, "This just gets better and better."

"I'm sorry to say Mr. Jackson, but that is all I can teach you, you will have to learn the other tricks on your own, but for now, use all you have learned to complete the tester course!"

Swish was determined to complete this course. He confronted many obstacles, but always ended up on the other side by either going through it, over it, under it, or around it. After about five minutes Swish had finally made it to the end. He had then heard a loud beeping noise.

Mr. Azner spoke with his proudest tone, "Mr. Jackson on behalf of the Squid Research Lab, Governor Yori Nassu, and Splatterton Funding, I proudly present your ticket to success!"

Swish could see someone approaching him, she seemed to be really tall, and wore a brown tweed jacket and an expensive skirt. Swish brought his head up and could see Governor Yori Nassu present him with his Turf War license. He couldn't believe it; the Governor had personally handed Swish his Turf War license. Swish had spoken in a surprised tone, "Governor Yori Nassu, this is a huge honor, and I am very grateful that you could take your time off to be here for someone as simple as me."

Governor Yori Nassu replied, "Please call me Yori, and your welcome, it is the least I could do for you, Mr. Swish Connor Jackson"

"Wow, you know my _full_ name too!" said Swish, who was in quite awe.

Yori replied in a cheerful tone, "It is my job to know everyone's name, and as for you Swish, your mother is waiting for you at the Booyah Base."

Before Swish was able to head to the Booyah Base, Mr. Azner had to quickly show Swish how to super jump. Swish remembered word for word what Mr. Azner had said _Super jumping is extremely useful in Turf War, and you can jump to one of your teammates after being splatted to quickly enter the fray. It is very useful if you have a teammate in distress, or if you need space to recover, then jump back to the Spawn Point_. Swish locked onto the Booyah Base jump point. He waited for about three seconds, then he was launched extremely high into the air. Swish could see the colorful city right underneath him. The cool air curved around him, everything seemed to slow down in time. "Wow! So this is what the city looks like from the birds' eye!"

As Swish landed on the jump point he was immediately greeted by his mother. She gave Swish a big hug and said in an affectionate tone, "I am SO proud of you Swishy! You are finally going to get to play your first Turf War! Imagine that, my fourteen-year-old son, playing Turf War! Well, I know you're dying to play your first match, so go ahead son, you've earned it. Actually, Samuel is calling you right now."

Section: 4

Samuel said to Swish in a teasing tone, "So, did you kiss your mother good bye?"

An annoyed Swish replied, "Shut it Sam! I'm pretty sure you would do the same."

A random inkling butted into their conversation, "Girls, girls, you're both beautiful! Okay? Now can we go give this Turf War thing a go?"

Swish questioned, "Kortessa where did you come from?

Kortessa replied, "Uh, I was right behind you idiot."

Swish changing the subject replied, "Okay? Well I just realized we are all wearing the same stuff, except I guess the girls get short-shorts?"

Kortessa countered, "What's wrong Swishy you want a pair?"

Swish replied in a serious tone, "Uh no? I just don't like showing a lot of skin, that's all…"

Samuel gave his opinion, "Well who cares about who's shorts, all I know is that the starter clothing Mr. Azner gave us isn't as fresh as many think, but hey! If we could win our first match, get a little mula', maybe we can buy some more fresh stuff, and maybe a new weapon!"

Kortessa replied cheerfully, "I'm with that! What about you Swishy?"

"Uh," Swish stuttered.

A mysterious voice called out, "They did it. They did it."

Swish immediately turned around, he saw no one. He could have sworn that someone was whispering to him; someone was telling him something. Swish mumbled to himself, "Great I'm goin' crazy…" Then, Swish saw snapping fingers right up in his face.

"Uh hello, Earth to Swishy, is anyone there?" It was Kortessa; she was breaking Swish out of his odd trance.

Swish replied dazedly, "Sorry KC, thought I was hearin' things."

Kortessa punched Swish in the arm and replied sarcastically, "Man, you're like an inkling in a nutshell."

Swish replied, "Ouch! I guess, but…"

Samuel interrupted, "Hey guys no more chit-chat okay? I'm lookin' around and uh, well it seems like a team consists of four, we of course consist of _tres_."

Kortessa replied in a slightly frustrated tone, "Well shoot! Looks like we gotta' find us a fourth! Ya' guys got any ideas? We need someone good, I have the speed, Samuel is the brawn, and Swishy is silent. What more do we need?"

"What about Mario?" asked Samuel.

"Mario can go die in a ditch for all I care," said Kortessa in an annoyed tone.

Samuel replied in a shocked tone, "Okay, geez! You don't have to get all shrimp on me!" Samuel looked around and thought for about ten seconds, he then came up with another idea, "What about Sedgie?"

Swish questioned, "Sedgie Ezers or Sedgie Nautilus"

Samuel replied enthusiastically, "Sedgie Ezers, she is good at planning stuff."

Kortessa replied annoyingly, "Oh of course Sedgie Ezers, you know me and her don't get along."

Samuel mumbled, "You get along with no one…"

Kortessa turned to Swish and asked, "What about you Swishy, you know anyone?"

Swish replied, "I know Alex, you know the nerd? It sounds funny, but just think about it. He is smart, maybe he could be our layout master."

Kortessa replied in a surprised tone, "Hm… now that I think about, that is actually a really good idea Swishy. Probably your _only_ good idea…"

Swish replied in a playful tone, "Hey! I heard that!"

"Why wouldn't you Swishy?" Kortessa began to look around and saw him, she looked back at Swish and Samuel. "Well there he is, let us go recruit a nerd."

Swish approached Alex, to which he started a conversation, "Hey yo' Alex Vjuz? I believe it is Vjuz… Anyway me and my two friends would like to see if you could you know join our team? 'Cause you know a team needs four, and we only got three."

The inkling was sitting on a bench, he looked up and replied in a surprised tone, "Really? You sure? I mean, there is like thousands of other inklings, but yet you decide to choose me."

In an honest tone, Swish replied, "Yes, definitely, absolutely. This is no joke man; we could really use your smarts."

Alex countered, "Oh so you don't want _me_ , you want my intellect. There is a big difference between the two."

Swish said, "Come on, we only have three members, you know how the ratio goes; four per team. Even then, we are friends, I'm pretty sure no one else offered."

Alex had given in, "Yeah you're right… I guess I'll join your "Socialist Brigade", it's not like I have anything better to do."

Swish replied happily, "Well, I guess I better show you to the team…"

Samuel looked behind Swish's shoulder and asked, "Hey where is lil' squirt? Is he in?"

Swish replied, "Yeah he is, I let him get some time to get his gear ready."

"Nice! We could use some brains in this team," said Kortessa. She looked around, and noticed her favorite show was on. "Hey it's the Squid Sisters, looks like their goin' live!"

Samuel replied, "Cool! can't wait to hear about today's news!"

Swish could hear the familiar opening show ringtone. He always remembered seeing the Squid Sisters on television, but never right up front on the balcony. Swish even remembered word for word the opening sentence that Callie and Marie presented.

Callie always started the show with, "Hang on to your tentacles…"

Then Marie would finish the sentence with, "It's Inkopolis News time!"

Callie continues, "News flash! News Flash!"

Marie finishes, "What is it! What is it!"

Callie continues in a distressed tone, "Inkopolis's Great Zapfish has… vanished!"

Marie replies in an inquisitive tone, "Wait, seriously?"

Callie becomes very sad, to which she asks Marie, "If it isn't recovered soon, are we gonna' lose power?"

Marie's answer, "Oh, I'm sure it'll be fine… probably."

Callie uses her detective voice, "I wonder if it has anything to do with that U.F.O. crash!'

Marie uses her opinion, "Sounds likely to me!"

Then Callie stood up tall and pronounced the iconic ending sentence, "Well, that's all for now! Until next time…"

This time, both Callie and Marie did their signature pose and said their signature phrase in sync, "Stay Fresh!"

After the show went off, Samuel turned to his friends and had his jaw wide open. "Oh my frickin' legit goodness! Did you guys just hear that? With no Great Zapfish, that means Inkopolis could eventually run out of power!"

Kortessa keeping herself calm, swiveled towards Alex and asked, "Hey you're the smart guy, and can you guess how much time Inkopolis has before it turns into Darkopolis?"

Alex started pacing back and forth, after about a minute he came up with his conclusion, "The Great Zapfish is an extremely rare specimen, the power it withholds is extraordinary, luckily the extra power that the Splashdown Factory has attained would last us approximately… half a year."

Swish was startled, he replied solemnly, "Wow, that seems like a long time, but not too long. If someone doesn't do anything about this, then we _could_ become Darkopolis."

Samuel turned towards the group, "Well I know it seems out of subject, but I think we've had enough disruptions, and maybe we could finally play our first Turf War match? I know that every single second Inkopolis loses a tiny bit of power, but come on it's our day!"

"Yeah, I'm not gonna' lie, I'm kinda' with him," said Kortessa, she then turned towards the Lobby.

Swish looked towards the lobby as well, and then commented, "I guess it couldn't hurt anyone to try out our first match."

When the team had entered the Lobby, they were greeted by the instructor of the Turf War matches. Swish knew his name was Benson, but couldn't exactly remember his full name.

Benson spoke in a modest voice, "Y'all know the rules, you went to kindergarten, so basically paint as much ground as ya' can, after that Judd will judge which team covered most ground. Got it? Okay first, I need y'all's team name."

Swish's group was surprised; for they hadn't even thought of a team name, so they had to think of one in at least a minute. Swish's first offer of advice, " Okay... we need something that sounds snazzy, but also cool."

Samuel replied, "I never exactly thought of a team name."

"Well we need _something_ , or else we will all look like idiots, not counting Alex," said Kortessa in a frustrated tone.

Alex looked around and saw a poster with a famous band on it, he had an idea, to which he would present to the group. He turned towards Benson and announced, "We are the Renegades!" After Alex's announcement, Kortessa gave him the pink eyed stare.

Benson flipped through his chart and mumbled, "Renegades, okay, check!"

The whole team wanted to shout at Alex, but they knew they would create a scene, and couldn't yell while Benson was giving orders.

Benson proceeded, "Renegades meet your opponent, the Ghosts!"

Swish could hear Benson say something like a _ll teams are placed in the same ranking group as their opponent_ , although he didn't listen completely, he knew very well who his opponent was. Even his physical features gave him away, but he was mostly known for his jet black eyes. As Swish was staring at his opponents' leader, Swish could almost feel the inkling's black eyes cut through his, like tiny needles are being inserted through him. This inkling put himself above others and deemed himself the leader of his group; his name was Kraler Ramos, he was mostly known as Ramos, but to Swish it didn't even matter. Swish could envision the past between the two, and it wasn't exactly a good ending. Swish was snapped back to reality, barely noticing he was carrying an Ink Tank, Splat Bombs, and some other device.

Benson was explaining the qualities of the devices furthermore, "The Ink Tank is a valuable resource, when you run out of ammo or ink, the Ink Tank will slowly refill, although transforming into squid form will refill the Ink Tank much faster."

The Renegades were in awe. They pondered about the fact that they could use up the ingredient inside the tank, but would then produce unlimited matter. All they knew was that science finds its ways.

Benson continued, "Every weapon comes equipped with their own special sub weapon, of course you haven't seen them yet, because they are safe fully transported to your weapon file. Figure out what your sub weapon is, what is does, and how to use it properly. Of course y'all have the same weapon, therefore, y'all have the same sub weapon."

Even the Ghosts stood up a little taller, both teams just couldn't wait to try out these sub weapons.

Benson's conclusion, "Now with technology and science advances, scientists were able to up the fresh meter on Turf War. Your weapons are tagged with these special meters, upon covering a certain amount of ground, the meter will tell you when your special is ready. Your special also varies between your weapons. Tap the meter when full, to activate your special, and let it rip on the battlefield. Your Splattershot Jr.'s special is the Bubbler." Benson then flipped up a switch, marked both team's shirts, and then said his final words, "You will be teleported to your Spawn Point, play fair, and good luck on your first Turf War match!" Right before Swish was teleported he could see Ramos make a slicing throat motion pointing towards him.

Swish and his friends came up out of the Spawn Point, and from the looks of their hair they had the signature blue color, after they had spawned he could hear someone on the intercom yell, "THREE... TWO... ONE... GO!"

Swish could feel the excitement rushing through him, he turned to his teammates and nodded to them, to which they nodded back. After Swish was running and inking he had realized what stage he was on, the first stage to ever be developed for Turf War; Urchin Underpass. He had heard a lot about Urchin Underpass,it was mostly known for its huge modifications to the terrain. Although, that didn't bother him at all, he was just excited the moment has finally come.

The Renegades split up in different directions, while the Ghosts did the same. Swish was met up by one of the Ghosts; Hailey Koto. She fired off first with her orange aiming straight towards Swish, to which Swish jumped to his left in a fluid motion. Hailey was pinning Swish to a corner to get a good splat on him, but Swish was smarter. Swish shot right underneath her, to which he transformed into squid form and slid across the floor shooting. What he had just saw before his very eyes was an inkling blow up into blue ink. He had attained a lucky splat and could hear a soft _woomy._ The adrenaline rushed through him. First, he didn't know that would happen, and second, he wondered what it felt like to be splatted. He pushed the thought aside and kept on inking.

Kortessa was rushing head on and was then surrounded by two of the Ghosts; Jetty Lelser and Adrian Darschetta. Kortessa didn't really know how a Turf War fight went, but she knew she had the speed. Adrian was the first to approach her, to which Kortessa turned around and had got a too easy splat. It had then become a one on one with Jetty. Everyone knew a girl fight never exactly went well, but of course only the girls knew. Jetty pinned Kortessa to a wall, surrounding her by orange ink, Jetty was bringing Kortessa to being splatted very fast, but Kortessa's gymnastics class had kicked in, for she was one inch away from the deadly orange ink, Kortessa had ran up the wall, kicked off, done a back flip in the process, and successfully landed on terra firma. The last thing Kortessa saw was Jetty with a surprised look on her face. Kortessa just loved the sweet sound of someone else's _woomy_.

With Swish and Kortessa covering good ground, there was still one more Ghost. Samuel and Alex had run straight towards Ramos. Smarts and brawn, what could go wrong? Alex was calculating an equation, but as he looked up he saw the orange ink hit him fast, to which Alex exploded into the gleaming orange ink. Ramos proudly commented, "Too easy!"

A surprised Samuel said, "Idiot! Looks like I gotta' handle this myself!"

Samuel was going to give Ramos the element of surprise. He transformed into squid form, and then raced toward Ramos in the blue ink, but what Samuel didn't know was that being in squid form doesn't exactly hide you. Ramos could see out of the corner of his eye, that there was a slight ripple in the blue ink. Ramos quickly turned around and fired at what seemed like nothing, but was instead Samuel trying to hide. Ramos loved the sight of his opponents blowing up out of his own color.

Samuel had respawned and saw Alex looking around, Samuel smacked him upside the head and said, "Come on man, you can't always plan things, sometimes you just gotta' do!" So Alex and Samuel took a separate path and tried to cover more ground.

"Adrian we gotta' get a move on Hailey is already back in the game!" yelled Jetty, she then turned around and kept inking turf.

Swish was swimming around until he felt a slight pain on his forehead. He transformed back into kid and saw a splash of orange on him. Someone was there and he knew it. An unknown voice had yelled at him, "Hey daredevil turn around!" Swish quickly turned around and saw that it was Hailey. She then continued, "I'm gonna' get you this time, then you're gonna' feel pain!" she then yelled out, "C'mon!" Swish saw all of Hailey's teammates jumping recons. He knew what was happening. The three other ghosts were going to super jump to take out Swish. Although, the slightly funny part about super jumping, was that you could see where an enemy was super jumping. So then it had hit him, he remembers the Splat Bombs.

Samuel, Kortessa, and Alex were on one of the higher poles watching Swish, for they thought he was most certainly going to be splatted.

Swish could feel the ink sweat beading down his forehead, he only had one shot, and it's either splat or be splatted. He took out a Splat Bomb and carefully aimed.

Kortessa questioned, "What's he doing?"

Alex had answered, "He going to try to take out the whole team with one Splat Bomb!"

Samuel commented, "Man I always knew he was crazy… I like it!"

Kortessa started chanting, "Swishy! Swishy! Swishy!"

Samuel and Alex had given in and started chanting as well.

Swish looked to his right and could see his friends watching from above, chanting his name. Swish took one last breath of air and threw the splat bomb. It seemed like time had slowed down, for Hailey's teammates finally landed next to her, but to their surprise all four blew up into a big blue explosion. Swish could just about hear four _woomys_.

The other Renegades shouted in victory, Swish had just landed his first strike with a Splat Bomb. They started inking the last bit of turf they could find.

Swish felt like time just froze, and in that time he thought a little bit _Hey, maybe I_ _do have a chance at being the freshest_! He was then brought back to reality and could hear the intercom go off, "TEN... NINE... EIGHT... SEVEN... SIX... FIVE... FOUR... THREE... TWO... ONE!"

The Renegades and the Ghosts were then sent to the judging chamber. Both teams were able to get an aerial view of the whole stage. From here was where Judd the Cat would decide who won. Of course, Swish already knew who won.

Judd announced, "The winner is… the Renegades!

The Renegades and the Ghosts could see the percentage of the winning team be eighty-six point seven percent, and the losing team at thirteen point three percent.

Even Judd was surprised, his comment, "I'm very ameowzed on how you purred out there; especially for being your first battle!"

Swish just couldn't believe it; he got to hear honest words from Yori and Judd!

The prize givers bestowed the winning and losing team with their coins, of course the winning team gets a bigger profit. Swish's team was then greeted by the headmaster Wilfred Wilbur Winnington. Wilfred had said that _after_ _an Inkling's first match they could start attaining level status, everyone starts at level one. Although, playing a Turf War match could get an inkling points, which means reaching a certain amount of points could bring someone up a level_.

As Swish's team was appointed to their scores, the team had won such a huge victory that they went straight to level two!

The Renegades walked out of the lobby with their chests high. Swish knew an inkling could play far more matches, but for being his first, he knew that he was tired and so was his teammates. Swish could see Ramos's team approach him and started off in a nasty tone, "Next time you won't be so lucky with your Splat Bombs, and if I find you in a dark alley, I will beat you up, just like I did at Splatterton High. Come on guys let's leave these losers."

Swish felt someone's hand on his shoulder. He saw it was Kortessa, she had commented, "It's alright Swishy, those jocks are just sore losers, but come on; you just landed one of the most epic throws I've ever seen!"

Samuel butted in, "Yeah man that was so righteous! It was about time we put those jerks in their place!"

Alex had then put in his opinion, "Yes that was quite enjoyable to watch! I would never be able to do that!"

Swish had then put on his funny face, he questioned, "Hey I saw you and Sam get splatted through those new masks that Benson gave us, how did it feel?"

Alex was about to speak, but Samuel had chosen to speak first, "I'm not gonna' lie man, it felt like being put on fire, but I'm pretty sure a lot of other inklings have been splatted way more times than us. Maybe, after so many times of being splatted, we actually get used to it."

Kortessa replied, "Most likely…"

Samuel continued, "Although, I think Hailey had the worst, she got splatted by you, TWICE!"

The team bursted into laughter, to which Swish replied, "Yeah man, that was pretty hilarious!" You should've seen the look on her face! Her face became a deep purple, just like her eyes."

Swish's eyes opened up a little; Swish began, "Well Renegades…" everyone had made a funny look towards Alex.

Swish continued, "Looks like we have a bright future ahead of us. You guys are a great team, and I wouldn't replace you with anyone else, even though we could use few adjustments. I know we got a good sum of money, but I don't think we've hit the correct level to start shopping, but anyways, I guess just stay fresh, and I'll see y'all tomorrow!"

Alex commented, "See ya' later!"

Samuel replied, " _Adios mi amigo_!

Section 5:

Kortessa hadn't exactly said good bye to Swish just yet. She then said, "It was a great day Swishy, and I think we make a pretty good team."

Swish commented, "Yeah, but why haven't you left yet, because I'm heading home."

Kortessa turned around, and then looked back at Swish, "I dunno', I just don't like going back to my parents, they are always arguing, so I could never exactly get any sleep."

Swish replied, "I'm sorry Kortessa there isn't exactly anything I can do."

Kortessa looked up at the stars and then said, "Well maybe you _could_ do something…"

"Like what?" said an intrigued Swish.

Kortessa replied with wide eyes, "I dunno', maybe I could spend a night at your place?"

Swish replied in a shocked tone, "That is kinda straightforward, but I guess I could make arrangements."

Kortessa hugged him and replied in an affectionate tone, "Thank you Swishy, really it means a lot."

Swish replied, "Uh, I guess, but wouldn't your parents need to know where you are?"

"Oh their fine, they won't even notice that I'm not there," said Kortessa in a quiet tone.

Swish, who was unsure, just said, "Okay." He brought up his phone and dialed his mother.

His mother answered and asked, "Hello?"

Swish began, "Hey mom it's Swish, and uh, is it alright if I have a friend spend a night at our house?"

Swish's mother replied cheerfully, "Sure honey, I will cook a nice dinner when you get here, but which friend is it?"

Swish answered, "It's Kortessa, mom." Swish quickly glanced at Kortessa who was staring up at the stars.

Swish's mother commented, "Ooh, Kortessa! Okay is she having another family problem?"

Swish replied in a sorrowful tone, "Yeah I guess relations are straining again, but honestly mom, I think it's getting worse, I could see it in her. Sure she is strong on the outside, but it seems like this is bothering her a lot."

"Okay honey, I guess I'll try to look into it, whatever problem you have, I will be there to fix it." Said Swish's mother in an honest tone.

Swish was in thanks and replied, "Thanks mom, I hope things can get better, and I guess I'll see you there! Bye mom!"

His mom ended the call with, "Goodbye Swishy can't wait to show you what I'm cookin' this time!"

Swish put his flip phone back in his pocket and took Kortessa out of her trance, "Hey KC, my mom is okay with you spendin' a night at my place, just make sure you have clothes and other junk."

Kortessa replied softly, "Okay, thank you, I really appreciate it."

Section 6:

Swish and Kortessa had boarded the Inkopolis Express. He knew it was a good ten-minute train ride, so he took the time to listen to some Squid Sister tunes.

Kortessa questioned Swish, "Whatcha' listening to?"

Swish took off his headphones and asked, "Huh?"

Kortessa replied, "I said, whatcha' listening to?"

Swish now understanding replied, "Oh, sorry, I'm just feeling the beat on some Squid Sisters."

Kortessa asking another question, "Can I listen?"

A surprised Swish replied, "Uh, sure!" He had always carried a headphone splitter, just in case someone else wanted to tune in. Kortessa shuffled through her backpack and pulled out her turquoise colored headphones.

Swish and Kortessa passed a few minutes listening to the Squid Sisters. He would occasionally glance at the outside world, looking at all the lights, and other aspects of the city's beauty. Swish started humming to the tune of Calamari Inkantation. Before he knew it, Kortessa was humming along with him. They had both looked around and had just barely realized they were the only ones on that train cart, to which they looked each other in the eyes and started singing the lyrics.

Kortessa started off with, "You."

Swish carried the sentence, "With me."

Kortessa continued, "The moon, rock around, give it."

Swish finished the line, "To me."

By then Swish and Kortessa started singing in sync, "You need to hear our song! Need to, have it, you need to hallelujah! When I rule, when I rule, and fuel the melody! You better kid!"

Swish commented in a surprised tone, "Dang Kortessa, you're pretty good!"

Kortessa replied softly, "How could I not be? Besides Swishy, you're not too bad yourself."

Swish replied using his proper voice, "Why thank you Madame Crawfish, although I'm sure you don't know the rest of the lines."

Kortessa questioned teasingly, "Oh really? What makes you think that?"

Swish mumbled, "I dunno', I don't hear you sing a lot."

Kortessa not the least bit intimidated, modestly replied, "Watch me Swishy." She took a deep breath and then cited the next lines, "Too many foes, you should've, should've, better been with me, to keep this melody. Two fellow deeds, your body know, I'm a kid! You're the hero and a squid!" she clapped in Swish's face and yelled in a proud voice, "Boom! How do ya' like me now Swishy?"

Swish replied sarcastically, "Yeah, I liked you better when you were dumb."

Kortessa was laughing so hard she snorted, she then commented, "Pssh, I was never dumb boy!" She then leaned closer to Swish's ear and whispered, "If anyone was dumb, it would be Sam."

Swish replied in agreement, "Yeah most likely, Sam is kind of an idiot!"

Swish's reply was so hilarious the two erupted into extreme laughter. After they calmed down, it was a musical the rest of the ride.

Section 7:

Swish loudly knocked on the door, " _Knock, knock!_ Hey mom it's Swish open the door!" Swish started fumbling in his pocket and just remembered he had his own key. "Idiot, and… open sesame!"

"Mmm… It smells _really_ good!" said Kortessa.

Swish could see his mother behind the counter brewing up a feisty dish. "Hey mom whatcha' cookin'?"

Swish's mother replied proudly, "Oh nothing much, just some sweet juicy krill kabobs, coral salad, and sushi sticks!"

Swish took a deep breath and then looked at the table, "Ya' know mom, you didn't have to do all of this."

"Why not? We do have a special guest!" Swish's mother then wiped some sweat off of her forehead.

Kortessa came from behind Swish and made a small hand wave, "Hey Margot!"

"Why, hello Kortessa! It is nice for you to stop bye! And my, my… you always look more beautiful than the last time I saw you!" Margot replied, she then made a hand gesture. "Go ahead and sit down guys, the food is done!"

Section 8:

"So how did your day go, with the, ya' know, whole first day doing a Turf War kinda' deal?" said Margot, who then leaned closer to hear their story.

Kortessa straightened her back and started off, "It was AMAZING! It went extremely well! I was able to get two splats. The first one was pretty easy, and the other used a little acrobatics, but nothing compares to what Swishy did today!" Kortessa and Margot had now given Swish their undivided attention.

Margot replied intriguingly, "Ooh, what happened?"

Swish went into his deep story telling voice, "Well lemme' say, it was a lucky shot…" He had then told Margot about seeing the other Ghosts super jumping over to Hailey, to which he timed his Splat Bomb just right to splat the whole team. He continued on about going to level two, and then learning about clothing power-ups. He said, "It's strange how it works, but the clothing that is bought, is scientifically modified to give an inkling a special attribute, such as faster swimming, or stealth jumping!"

Margot leaned back in her chair and had taken in all the information, "Wow Swishy! Looks like you and Kortessa made a good play today, especially for being your first match!

Swish didn't think much of it, "Eh, it was just a lucky shot…"

Kortessa said, "Pssh, but it sure was frickin' cool!"

Margot was about to speak, but to everyone's surprise she had leaned back in her chair a bit too far, leading her to fall backwards. Swish and Kortessa had mixed feelings, they didn't know whether to laugh about it, or if Margot was actually hurt. Luckily, Margot started laughing uncontrollably.

Swish said, "Geez mom! You scared me half to death!"

Kortessa replied in agreement, "Same here Swishy!"

Margot got up and lightly dusted herself off, "Well I'm tired so you guys can watch that new movie, or hit the bunks like me." Margot started shuffling to her room.

Swish called out to Margot, "Okay mom! Goodnight! After Swish had heard his mother close her door, Swish and Kortessa looked each other in the eyes. They knew exactly what they were going to do.

Swish said, "So KC what do you wanna' watch first, Squid Biology or Inknation Three: The Salmon Derby?

Kortessa replied cheerfully, "Well duh, Inknation, documentaries are boring."

Swish mumbled after her comment, "I like documentaries."

They had both sat down on the couch, with all the lights turned off. The only thing in peripheral view was the television and some popcorn. Kortessa turned to Swish, "I'm actually kinda' excited about seein' this movie, I heard great reviews from it."

Swish said, "That's cool, I haven't seen it either, so it'll be a surprise for both of us," He then looked at his watch. "nine forty-seven…"

About an hour into the movie Kortessa had made a huge yawn and started getting really drowsy. She then nestled her head on Swish's shoulder. Kortessa said, "Goodnight Swishy."

Swish was too deep into the movie he didn't even realize she was resting on his shoulder. He then murmured, "I wonder what will happen next…" Before Swish knew it, he had fallen into a deep sleep as well.

Section 9:

"They did it. They did it," the voice seemed to echo throughout the void, just spiraling endlessly with no purpose. The voice calls out again, "They did it. They did it."

Swish could feel some sort of essence encircling him. _Is this a dream?_ he thought. He tried walking, but for some reason he couldn't muster the strength to do so. After a bare minute, Swish was able to start running. He never knew why, but he just kept running, never forgetting the voice. "They did it. They did it."

Swish kept running and then heard a voice, _Swishy come to me!_

Swish tried to say, "Kortessa!" but all that came out was a weird croak. Swish kept running. "Kortessa! I'm coming!"

The blurry Kortessa seemed to have something to say, "Swish I-I l…" Kortessa was cut off by a screeching noise.

The voice went off again, "They did it. They did it," then Swish was struck by a vision. An old man voice called out, "Swish Jackson, this world will fall apart. We need your help. The Octo King will destroy anything in his path for the power he desires."

Another voice called out, "Help me Swish Jackson, you're my only hope…" Swish was so frustrated by the confusion he tried to yell out, but yet again another meager croak. He was then brought upon by a bright flash.

Section 10:

Swish woke up to a bright flash, "Oh no! The humans have found us! My eyes are burning!" Swish stood upright quickly and then immediately ran into a wall.

Margot cheerfully announced, "I'm savin' that one for the scrapbooks!"

Swish replied dazedly, "You're saving what for the what books?"

"Oh yeah sorry Swishy wanna' take a look at the picture?" said Margot, she then gestured Swish to come take a look

Swish slowly shuffled to the camera, as he saw the picture, his mind rapidly hit the alarm meter, "Mom what are you doing?"

Margot shrugged, "I dunno' I just think it's very cute that my son got his first girlfriend!"

Swish started stuttering, "W-we aren't l-like that mom! J-just friends, that's all!"

Margot leaned in and squinted, "Mhmm… that's what they all say…"

An infuriated Swish replied, "WHO IS THEY?"

Margot cooed, "Aah, it's so cute when you do that!"

Swish's face was as red as a tomato, he then murmured, "Mom, your gonna' wake KC up!"

Margot leaned in even closer, "Ooh so now you guys got code names…" She then lifted her eyebrows simultaneously.

Swish took a deep breath and then said, "Mom you know that I've been calling her KC since the first grade, and she has been calling me Swishy for the same amount of time. Besides, you call me Swishy too!"

Margot replied teasingly, "Oh really? What makes you think that Swishy?"  
Swish pointed his hand in the air, "SEE? You just called me Swishy unintentionally!"

Margot said, "Ooh, you're using big words, Mr. Vocab."

Swish replied in a frustrated tone, "My name isn't Mr. Vocab; even then if I WAS a mister, I would be Mr. Jackson."

Margot seeming defeated replied, "Okay, okay, you win Swishy! I guess I'll just leave y'all alone…"

Swish said nothing, and watched his mother walk back towards her room. He then glanced at Kortessa, "Well that was interesting wasn't it KC?" He realized she was still asleep, he then saw what she was wearing, "Ha! You had to wear _my_ purple fish slippers didn't ya'?" He looked at the time, "Oh man it's only eight fifty. Guess I gotta' wait for KC." As if it seemed Kortessa wouldn't awaken, Swish had finally succumbed to boredom. He sighed and then decided to play his Wii U, "What should I play? What should I play…?" Swish started shuffling through his extremely small collection of games, "Go Duck Yourself? Eh, I guess, it's better than Explody Bomb." Swish played for a good hour, and then felt some movement on the squeaky couch.

Kortessa opened up one eye lid, "Uh, Swishy whatcha' doin'?"

"Oh just playin' my Wii U, because clearly you sure do know how to throw a party…" said Swish, he then pointed at the clock.

Kortessa lightly punched him in the arm, "Boy, I can sleep as long as I want!"

Swish said, "Okay, okay, I was just kinda' bored."

Kortessa replied, "Oh Swishy, you're not going to die."

Swish scratched the back of his head, "Yeah I know, it's just me and mom had a little incident…"

Kortessa replied intriguingly, "Ooh, tell me, tell me Swishy." She leaned in a bit closer.

"Uh, no can do, maybe later." He was saved just in time, for he felt a vibration in his pocket. Swish pulled out his phone and answered, "Hello?"

A mysterious voice replied, "Hello is this Mr. Jackson?"

A confused Swish replied, "Uh yes this is, ma'am… I'm sorry, but I have NO idea who you are…"

The mysterious woman paused and continued, "Yes I understand you may be a bit confused, but I am dearly sorry, I am not at authority to tell you my name."

Swish murmured, "Well how do you know my name?"

The woman quickly answered, "We have our ways Mr. Jackson…"

Swish's eyes went wide open, "W-who's we?"

The woman said, "I'm sorry Mr. Jackson, but I am not in obligation to tell you."

Swish replied in a frustrated tone, "You're not in obligation to tell me anything!" He could see Kortessa snapping her fingers.

Kortessa mouthed the words, "Who is that?"

Swish mouthed back, "I don't know."

The woman continued, "Mr. Jackson, from looking at your profile, you seem to not be living in luxury."

Swish said, "Uh yeah? What does that mean for you?"

The woman replied, "Well Mr. Jackson, let's just say we can make your work noticeable." The woman paused and continued, "Mr. Jackson if you are interested, please meet us at the sewage break in the Booyah Base tomorrow, twelve o' clock sharp."

"Okay?" Swish immediately hung up, he then slowly faced Kortessa, "That was a _really_ weird conversation."

Kortessa wrapped her tentacle hair around her finger, "Must've been." There was a long and deafening pause between the two, and then she had broken the silence, "So what exactly went on in that call?"

Swish bit his lip and spoke, "I don't even know. They were telling me to meet _them_ at the Booyah Base."

Kortessa said, "Today?"

"Nah, tomorrow, at twelve." He then straightened his back and looked out the dirty window, "They didn't even say why. They just told me to meet them, that's all."

Kortessa's eyes widened, "Did they say if you should come alone?"

"I dunno', never mentioned anything about that, although I'm pretty sure they don't want any friends with me," said Swish, who stood up and started walking to the bathroom, he stopped and turned around to tell Kortessa, "Besides, we got a few Turf War battles to play!"

Kortessa smirked and replied, "Yeah, I guess so Swishy."

Section: 11

Swish and Kortessa stepped off the train striding into the Booyah Base with pride. Swish pulled out his flip phone and started texting, _Hey Sam, come down to the BB. KC and I are already down here_. Swish pressed the send button, and got his response straight away, _Ok swish cheese, I'll see ya' down there after I get my_ \- His phone buzzed and blacked out, "What the?"

As Swish, Kortessa, and all the other inklings were hanging out, the whole city seemed to turn off. All the communication was jammed, the city lights went out, and even the cars stopped. There was a loud gasp in the crowd. Kortessa had her jaw wide open and murmured, "What in the world?"

After a long undesirable thirty minutes, all the power seemed to come back on with no trouble. Swish immediately started texting Samuel, _Sam did anything_ _happen over on your side_ _?_ Five minutes passed and there was no response. Swish complained, "Come on Sam, come on…" Every minute seemed like an excruciating hour, but still no response.

Kortessa said, "Is he not responding?"  
Swish shook his head. "He's not. I hope nothing is wrong…"

Section: 12

There was little space to breath; Samuel needed to escape. Samuel started having a coughing fit and said, "Dang, this fire is gonna' put me out!" Luckily it was just Samuel at his home, but he still didn't like the fact that his house could collapse anytime. He started shuffling towards the door, still coughing. A big chunk of flaming wood had fallen right in front of him, leaving Samuel to find another way out. Samuel only had one idea, but it would be risky. He headed down to the basement; luckily it hadn't been consumed by fire… yet. He grabbed a random crowbar and started trying to pry open a container. There was a lot of grunting, until he finally opened the boiler. "Mom told me to never handle water, but sorry, sometimes you gotta' do the wrong thing to fix a wrong thing."

Samuel carefully carried a makeshift jug of water. He started walking upstairs, when all of a sudden; a pile of old cemented bricks tumbled down blocking the path. "Shoot! How in the world am I gonna' get through this one!" Samuel started becoming frustrated. "Well, I gotta' think of something!" He had an idea, but it would be risky. He started gathering a plethora of papers; he laid them down connecting one end of the fire to the boiler; he was creating a fuse. He started finding anything thick that could possibly protect him from the blast. "Samuel took his necklace out of his undershirt and started reciting a few prayers, "As I am brought on the brink of death, please founding fathers, help me survive this unknown disaster…"

A quick ten seconds later, Samuel felt the impact of the blast. He stood up immediately knowing he just survived. He started running to the blast hole, until he had realized he was hit by debris. Samuel started gasping uncontrollably. He was in so much shock he could barely mouth the words, "I've just been stabbed by metal in my chest." Samuel was finally hit by reality; he knew how respawning worked in Turf War, but in the real world, inklings didn't have the power to last _forever_. It was actually possible to _die_ when not in battle; the thought of that made Samuel move even faster.

Samuel drew closer and closer towards the blast hole; he could smell the scent of the cinched grass. Samuel murmured, "Ah, nature… sort of."

Samuel started to slowly shuffle out of the blast hole; holding a hand on his chest. As he was barely escaping the emblazoned house, he heard sirens. Samuel mumbled, "Here comes the cavalry."

Samuel started heading to some safe ground; he then lay down flat on his back. About two minutes later, he could see a fire truck and an ambulance. A rescue team immediately jumped out of the ambulance to help the wounded Samuel.

The team hoisted Samuel onto a stretcher, to which one member asked him, "What is your name kid?"

Samuel answered in a barely audible tone, "Samuel Cutters…"

The inkling woman said, "Okay Samuel, we are going to take you to the hospital; you are going to be just fine."

What happened next was all forgotten. Samuel blacked out a minute into the trip to the emergency room.

Section: 13

Alex had been taking his morning jog to catch the train, when he heard sirens wailing, he stood still; an ambulance rushed by making its way to the Inkopolis Medical Center. "Huh, I wonder who's in there…"

Luckily, he was able to reach the train in time and pay his riding fee. As the train starting moving, he could hear the slightly nostalgic jingle; all inklings knew that this jingle took them to the Booyah Base.

Alex pulled out a document and started writing symbols on it. "If there is only one, then I must use the… quadratic formula. Yes, that's the one." A good few minutes' worth of a ride had passed. Alex could hear the same jingle, telling him he arrived. "Okay, Swish where are you?" He started looking around the base to see if his friends were there. It was a cold early morning, so he saw very few inklings hanging out. Alex only took a few seconds to look around, until he spotted his new friends. "Hey Swish, I made it!"

Swish turned around hoping it was his great friend Samuel; instead, it was his _other_ friend. "Oh hey! Uh, have you talked to Sam at all?"

Alex said sternly, "Negative, I haven't heard anything from him… why?"

Swish raised an eyebrow. "Really? Did you not notice the power outage, about I dunno', a few minutes ago?"

Alex still in a confused state replied, "Sorry man, didn't notice. I haven't exactly touched any of my tech since yesterday."

"I guess, but considering we don't have our fourth, we can't play a match at _all_ ," said Swish, who emphasized the word " _all_."

Alex suggested, "We could have a temporary teammate."

Kortessa jumped into the conversation and said, "I don't think that's a good idea. No one can replace Sam."

Swish replied in agreement, "Yeah man, we can't do that. Looks like we'll just have to wait."

Alex replied, "Alright, but I don't really have anything else to do."

Kortessa said, "Well you're the nerd here, I'm pretty sure you're bound to find somethin' to do."

Swish replied, "Well sorry guys, maybe we can hang out at the café for a little while."

Kortessa said, "I'm in."

Alex was about to speak, when he realized something funny. "Uh, actually, there isn't even a door to get _in_ the café."

Kortessa said, "Oh yeah. I forgot there was no door."

Swish looked at the café and replied, "Actually that's kinda' strange. How do people even get in there?"

Kortessa inferred, "Maybe there is some kind of membership pass."

Alex said, "Maybe, maybe, but even then it seems like only-"

An inkling bumped into Alex, pushing him away from the conversation. "Hey watch where you're goin' man!"

The inkling turned around. "Oh really? I'd say the same to you."

Swish's eyes went wide open. "Ramos what are you doing here?"  
Ramos replied, "Oh just takin' a nice stroll through the Booyah Base."

Kortessa said, "You gotta' be squiddin' me! There is no way you are just taking a _stroll_."

Ramos said, "And what exactly makes you think that _KC_?"

An angered Kortessa said, "No one calls me KC, except my friends!"

"Oh is that so?" said Ramos; he then lifted his chin.

"Kortessa straightened her back and leaned in closer. "Oh yes, that is _so_!"

Swish said calmly, "Ramos why can't you just leave us alone, the day has already gone down a hole."

Ramos changed the subject. "I will get you next time, that throw was just luck… I guess I will just see ya' around whenever Sam comes back." He paused and mumbled, "That is _if_ he comes back."

Swish said, "What did you say?"

Ramos kept a straight face and said, "Nothing."  
Kortessa leaned in even closer. "You sure about that; because it sounded like somethin'."

Ramos put his hands behind his back. "Yes ma'am, you can trust me."

Kortessa folded her arms. "Uh-huh. Why would _I_ ever trust _you_?"

Ramos said, "I dunno', maybe if you got to see my good side…"

Swish smirked and replied, "You have no good side."

Ramos smiled and said, "Although that is what you think, see everyone has their opinions. You can't read my mind."

Swish still keeping calm replied, "Yes I understand that, but come on man. If you're gonna' come barging into our conversation, then you must want something."

Kortessa said in agreement, "Yeah."

Ramos finally getting to the point said, "Well looks like you finally know what an inkling wants."

Kortessa made a circular motion with her hands. "Go on."  
Ramos announced, "I would like your help."

Kortessa answered immediately, "There is no way we are helping you. Why can't you find anyone else?"

"Let's just say no one wants to talk to a level one," said Ramos.

Swish said, "Okay? Even if we did help you, what exactly is it that you wanted us to help you with?"

Ramos replied, "A search and rescue mission."

Kortessa said, "Well you gotta' be more informational than that inkwad!"

Swish answered in agreement, "Yeah, and who exactly would we be savin'?"

Ramos said, "My friends, ya' know, the ones you splatted a couple of times down at Underpass."

Swish replied, "Okay so you come and interrupt us, then you ask us to help your nasty friends, let me guess its work with your enemy week!"

Ramos looked down slightly. "Let's just say my relations with the Inkopolis folk aren't too well."

Kortessa mumbled, "You don't even have relations."

Swish said, "Okay, guys I know it's gonna' sound really strange, but I say we help him."

Kortessa replied in a shocked tone, "You gotta' be squidding me! I can't believe you're actually discussing with this loser."

Swish completely ignored Kortessa and continued, "Is there any like, how should I put this… do you have any sort of name for the culprits?"

Ramos said, "All the intel I have is that it some sort of gang known as White Fang."

Swish started stroking his chin. "White Fang, White Fang, White Fang… I think I've heard of it."

Ramos replied, "Well looks like we are at a great start."  
Swish said, "Okay, I'm only gonna' do one favor for you; and that is it. I don't wanna' become friends with you, but I would like to at least take a step towards good relations. And in return, you must never talk to us again."

Ramos held out his hand and said, "It's a deal then," Swish and Ramos shook hands.


End file.
